Developers behind the Midway Rising redevelopment project are pushing ahead with plans to transform the land surrounding Pechanga Arena, despite years of legal hurdles and continued opposition from some residents. At a public forum Sunday at Pechanga Arena, developers and project supporters outli ned plans for a large-scale redevelopment of the city-owned property, while residents questioned the project’s environmental impacts, transparency and use of public land. The Midway Rising project calls for replacing the aging Pechanga Arena with a new 16,000-seat entertainment venue, along with more than 4,200 homes, retail space, parks and other community amenities. Supporters say the redevelopment would create construction and permanent jobs, provide new opportunities for local businesses and help address the region’s housing needs. “Redeveloping this area — this long-standing property — can create construction and permanent jobs,” said state Sen. Akilah Weber Pierson, D-39, who organized Sunday’s forum. The event drew both supporters and opponents of the project. During a question-and-answer session, one attendee pressed developers on the project’s potential impact on groundwater. “Even though I know we shouldn’t get into a discussion with people paid to disagree with us, how much have you budgeted for groundwater pumping 7 days a week, 24 hours a day?” the attendee asked. But others voiced support for the project. “I want to thank all of you for years-long effort to get Midway Rising approved because it will create thousands of high quality jobs for us,” one attendee said. “How soon can we break ground on this project?” The Midway Pacific Highway Community Planning Group, a city-recognized land-use advisory board, has been involved in discussions surrounding the project for years. Cathy Kenton, chair of the planning group, said developers have consistently participated in community meetings and responded to requests for information. “They’ve been very open, they will respond to any request, they have attended every one of our meetings for the last 2 and a half years,” Kenton said. Kenton said some of the residents raising concerns now have had opportunities to participate in the process. “Those folks who say they’ve never heard a lot of this are simply choosing to ignore it until now because we’re getting close to the finish line,” she said. Susan Gates, who lives near Pechanga Arena, said she remains opposed to the project and believes residents’ concerns have not been adequately addressed. “This is supposed to be a public use land and what they’re doing is now they’re dividing it up and giving it to a developer,” Gates said. Gates also questioned the absence of San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria, who was invited to Sunday’s event but was unable to attend. Representatives from his office attended in his place. “This is a big project. This was one of his baby projects, he said it was ‘his baby.’ Well where is he?” Gates said. Gates said renderings of the proposed development do not capture the concerns of people who live in the surrounding neighborhoods. “I don’t live on a rendering, OK? I live in the real world,” she said. The project has faced a number of legal and political hurdles since the city’s Midway-Pacific Highway Community Plan Update was approved in 2018. One of the most significant disputes has centered on the area’s 30-foot building-height limit. In January, the California Supreme Court declined to hear the city’s appeal in the case, leaving a lower-court ruling in place that blocked an exemption to the height limit for the project. The developers say the project has undergone an extensive environmental review, with more than 1,000 pages of environmental analysis. They say the redevelopment is designed to mitigate potential environmental impacts while creating a more “vibrant and productive community.” The development team, co-led by Legends Global, plans to seek additional approval from the San Diego City Council later this year. Those approvals would allow the project to continue through additional planning and environmental review before construction begins. Developers hope to break ground in 2027, if the project receives the necessary approvals. Another topic mentioned by concerned residents was Senate Bill 958, authored by Senator Weber Pierson. The legislation would limit how the California Environmental Quality Act, or CEQA, could be used to challenge environmental impacts associated with increased building height, potentially making it easier for certain taller housing projects to move forward. The Midway Rising development team says its long-term vision is to create what it has described as a “community village,” supported by more than $300 million in infrastructure investments. The existing Pechanga Arena, formerly known as the San Diego Sports Arena, is more than 60 years old. For opponents like Gates, however, the debate over the project’s future is far from over. “We’re in for the fight of our lives,” she said. NBC 7 reached out to the City of San Diego for comment on why Mayor Gloria did not attend the public forum. We did not hear back in time for publication. This story was originally reported for broadcast by NBC San Diego. AI tools helped convert the story to a digital article, and an NBC San Diego journalist edited the article for publication. ...read more read less